Biten

On Friday Ruth and I attended the Sting concert at the amphitheater previously known as Pine Knob, now called the DTE Music Theater. The concert is part of a tour promoting Sting’s latest album, Symphonicities that features some classic songs like Roxanne re-done to fit within the context of a symphonic background. On the tour and the album Sting is backed up by one female singer, a four piece ensemble, and the Royal Philharmonic.

If I had to classify the resulting style I would called it jazz, or maybe big-band, but really the concert features a wide range of musical styles and in my opinion really highlights Sting’s enormous talent. Friday night was a perfect blend of good music well performed in a wonderful outdoor setting on a beautiful summer night. My only disappointment was with some of the people who sat around me who felt it necessary to talk throughout the concert. Being summer it makes sense that the concert would be outdoors, as appears to be the case for most of the performances during the U.S. part of the tour this summer, however, the concert might have been better appreciated at a concert hall like Detroit’s Fox Theatre where people would be more inclined to listen to the performance.

If you are lucky enough to live in one of the cities that remain on the tour, I highly recommend that you go. Otherwise, check out the CD to see what I mean. I wouldn’t call myself a big fan of Sting, but I came away from hearing this performance impressed enough to seek out more of his music.